Variety seems to be the name of the game with the Holden Cruze. This is especially true of the petrol versions of the Holden Cruze. It doesn’t matter whether you want a hatchback, a sedan or a wagon – you can get what you want with a Holden Cruze Petrol.  And that’s just the start of your choices…

What nearly all of the Holden Cruze Petrol models have in common is the engine. This is a pretty decent little unit, so it certainly makes sense to have it in nearly all the Cruzes. Notice the word “nearly all” – inside the SRI Z-series, you get something that smaller but obeys the Chilli Law: the small ones are the hottest.

The basic petrol engine that you’ll find inside the Equipe and Z-series sedans and hatchbacks (and the CD and CDX sportwagons) is a 1.8-litre unit that’s been designed with economy in mind without being sluggish.  It has a maximum power output of 104 kW at 6300 rpm and a maximum torque of 175 Nm at 3800, which is enough for any good middle of the road Aussie family sedan, hatchback or wagon. Not that the Holden Cruze Petrol is going to be literally in the middle of the road – the standard ESC (electronic stability control) will ensure that you can stay exactly where you want to on the road, with its clever combination of traction control and ABS brakes with braking assistance and a host of sensors.  The rear parking assistance (all models) and the rear view camera (Z-series, CD and SRI models) also help keep the end of the car – whatever body style you choose – safe when you back.

Back to the engines.  Fuel economy is all-important for any vehicle that wants to have the slightest hope of being a desirable family-friendly vehicle, which the Holden Cruze Petrol is.  The combined economy figure varies depending on the transmission, which means that the automatic variants have a combined fuel economy figure of 7.4 L/100 km under test conditions, in contrast with the 7.0 L/100 km possible with the manual hatchbacks and the sedans (note that you only get the automatic transmission in the sportwagons).  This is respectable enough and it certainly means that the 60-litre petrol tank won’t need to be topped up all that happen.

What will you get if you opt for the SRI Z-series sedan or sports hatch? Well, you get a lot more power and a lot more torque: 132 kW at 5500 rpm and 230 Nm at 2200 rpm.  I’ll leave it to your imagination what you’ll be able to do with this once you get your hands on the leather-wrapped steering wheel and the six-speed gear stick (you can opt for a six-speed auto as well).  Let’s just say that it’s a touch more fun than the typical bland family vehicle and it can certainly make those 18-inch alloy wheels spin around…

If the designers were briefed to make a family-friendly vehicle no matter what the body shape, they have succeeded.  It’s good to see that all versions have the full safety package, earning the vehicle the full five stars from ANCAP.  Isofix child seat preparation comes as standard for two rear seats, as do airbags all over the show (front, side impact and curtain), pretensioned pyrotechnic seatbelts with force limiters and a super-tough body shell.

There’s more to being family-friendly than just having good safety features. Let’s face it: we don’t see the safety features like airbags in action every day (thank goodness for that!). However, you will get to see some of the other comfort features daily, such as the air conditioning (with electronic climate control in the SRI Z-series hatchbacks and sedans) and the heated front seats in all the Z-series variants.  The family is also likely to appreciate the six-speaker sound system that comes as standard, complete with USB, iPod and auxiliary input. All Holden Cruze Petrol models come with Bluetooth preparation and with text-to-speech functionality for the phone. Text-to-speech is very handy for those of us who receive a constant stream of text messages when we’re on the road, as this reads out any text messages so you don’t succumb to the temptation to read it yourself (you could call this a safety feature). Voice control, a 7-inch colour touchscreen display panel and cruise control come as standard on all variants, and the Z-series models (including the SRIs) throw in satellite navigation as well. Plenty of storage space and power outlets complete the comfort and convenience deal.

The exterior styling team have done a very good job of ensuring that all of the body styles look similar so that the onlooker knows that he or she is looking at a Holden Cruze Petrol. The five-door hatchback body doesn’t look awkwardly chopped off and the sportwagon doesn’t look like it’s had a stretch job.  Of all the styles, the Z-series variants are the most elegant, what with the front fog lights, the spoiler (lip spoiler on the sedan only and a sports spoiler on the hatchback) and the body kit.  All models except for the SRI Z-series have 17-inch alloy wheels.

As if the choices of body style and line weren’t enough to choose from, you’ve also got a very wide range of colour choices, which also depends on the body shape. The smaller the body, the wider the range of colour choices – guess you have to offer a selection of fun brights for a fun sports hatch!

If I was going to pick a Holden Cruze Petrol for my next vehicle, I would probably hesitate between the CD sportwagon and the Z-series sedan, depending on whether leather seats (in the Z-series sedan) or the extra load space for the dog in the sportwagon won the day.

Current model series include:

• Holden Cruze Petrol Equipe Hatch
• Holden Cruze Petrol Z-series Hatch
• Holden Cruze Petrol SRI Z-series Hatch
• Holden Cruze Petrol Equipe Sedan
• Holden Cruze Petrol Z-series Sedan
• Holden Cruze Petrol SRI Z-series Sedan
• Holden Cruze Petrol CD Sportwagon
• Holden Cruze Petrol CDX Sportwagon

For any more information on the Holden Cruze Petrol, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quotes requests out to our national network of Holden dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!